By the time an RFP hits SAM.gov, the buying office already has a favorite. Here's how to be that favorite.
You posted the job listing. You collected applications. But be honest—did you already have a candidate in mind?
Government procurement works the same way.
An RFP on SAM.gov looks like an open competition. Technically, it is. But by the time it's published, the buying office has spent months—sometimes years—figuring out what they need and who can deliver it.
They've met with vendors. Attended industry presentations. Read white papers. Formed opinions.
The company that helped them think through the problem usually wins the contract. Not because the system is rigged—but because understanding shapes requirements. And requirements shape who wins.
If the final Statement of Work calls for "machine learning-based predictive analytics for logistics optimization," that language didn't come from a template. A vendor briefed the program manager six months ago and used those exact words. The SOW was written around their capability.
The competition most companies see—the 30-day sprint to write a proposal after an RFP drops—is the visible 10%. The other 90% happens in a quieter arena.
RFIs and Sources Sought notices. These are the government's way of asking "Who's out there?" before they commit to a solicitation. Most companies scroll past them. The ones who respond get something more valuable than a contract: a conversation.
Industry days. Think speed-dating between the government and potential vendors. Program managers sit across the table, describing their problems in their own words. The companies who show up hear how the buyer frames the mission—and shape how it gets solved.
Capability briefings. You can request a meeting with almost any federal program office. Most companies don't know this. The ones who do walk in, present their approach, and plant a seed. Months later, when the RFP drops, the evaluators remember the company that already understood the mission.
Stop treating SAM.gov like a job board you check on Mondays. Start treating it like an intelligence feed.
When an agency issues three RFIs in your domain over six months, a solicitation is coming. The question is whether you'll be the company that helped shape it—or the one scrambling to respond after it drops.
The companies that win consistently in federal contracting aren't writing better proposals. They're making sure the proposal was written for them.
Outrider surfaces pre-solicitation signals—RFIs, Sources Sought notices, and agency activity patterns—so you're in the conversation before the competition knows one is happening.
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